Fact or Fiction: Gambling Makes You A Better Player
- Thread starter BasementDweller
- Start date
It certainly made me a better player.
I have to agree with Neil, it's about motivation. When I enter a tounament, I'm gambling my entry fee that I'll get something back (calculated risk), and am very motivated to do well. On weekends, a bunch of us play 5 or 6-way races to five for a buck...just a little sting, but it motivates. I can see how some people can get addicted to the adrenaline of high stakes, but to be a better player you have to know your game and play within yourself. Practice, tournaments, gambling...it all works to improve if you're motivated enough.
Fact......:smile:
I think most of us understand that gambling makes you "try harder" as some would say, or play more focused, and I will concede that this is a benefit from gambling. My point was simply that this hightened sense of focus at the gambling table doesn't really improve your game all that much. I'm sure it helps you play better under pressure and all that...
Now hitting the practice table with purpose, as you said, will definitely bear fruit.
I know I'm gonna get crushed for this, but I truly believe it so here goes...
I get the same "motivation" or pressure to win from playing league play as I would if I were gambling small sets. (I would never be in a position to gamble big bucks, so that is a whole other issue.)
I take my league play seriously enough that I feel horrible if I let my team down. I'm not just losing $20-$50 of my own money, I'm letting 7 other people down. And I don't like that feeling one bit.
I've played the deciding match for our team several times in the past 16 months. Meaning divisional playoffs (with actual money on the line for my whole team), and Vegas qualifiers. I've won some and I've lost some. But the pressure was real, and tangible. And I know I'm a better player for it.
There are alternatives to gambling to give yourself the extra incentive to win. As Neil said, make the bet to yourself if need be.
(Nothing against gambling. If my financial and family situation were different, perhaps I'd bet some small stuff occasionally. I enjoy reading the exploits in The Action Room. Although I admit, the matching up, the posting and all the drama that goes with it seems like far too much work and real pressure to get paid without a fight for my tastes.)
I get the same "motivation" or pressure to win from playing league play as I would if I were gambling small sets. (I would never be in a position to gamble big bucks, so that is a whole other issue.)
I take my league play seriously enough that I feel horrible if I let my team down. I'm not just losing $20-$50 of my own money, I'm letting 7 other people down. And I don't like that feeling one bit.
I've played the deciding match for our team several times in the past 16 months. Meaning divisional playoffs (with actual money on the line for my whole team), and Vegas qualifiers. I've won some and I've lost some. But the pressure was real, and tangible. And I know I'm a better player for it.
There are alternatives to gambling to give yourself the extra incentive to win. As Neil said, make the bet to yourself if need be.
(Nothing against gambling. If my financial and family situation were different, perhaps I'd bet some small stuff occasionally. I enjoy reading the exploits in The Action Room. Although I admit, the matching up, the posting and all the drama that goes with it seems like far too much work and real pressure to get paid without a fight for my tastes.)
I've seen many confident average players. These are usually the ones that way over estimate their own games and under estimate their need for practice :grin: You know the ones that are starring at their cue tip on the way back to their chairs screaming "I never miss that shot." Don't get me wrong I do know how important confidence is in this game. I have had mine shattered plenty of times.
Reinforcing one's subconscious mind? I'm not even certain what that means.
Again - Gambling may teach you how to win but I don't think it is all that effective when it comes to helping you improve. There is WINNING and there is PLAYING BETTER POOL. I do want both but I don't confuse one with the other.
I would. If I run out on you, good job. If I 3 foul you, great job.
What you're saying makes since. You hear a lot of people say that they feel more pressure when they are being staked by someone than when they are playing with their own money. You don't want to let them down. I just question how much your actual pool skills are improving because of this pressure? You learn to perform better under this pressure but I don't really think people are improving all that much. Of course with the exception of those that are matching up non stop (hidden practice) or those who are novices and any type of play will improve their games. :deadhorse:
This is the real issue at hand here. Either you have a strong desire to play your best (note that I said "play your best", not win!), or you do not. I can tell you that I have gambled in the past. I no longer gamble for my own reasons. But, some of the games that I have tried my absolute best, and played my absolute best in was for pride alone. I think that either you want to play great pool, or you do not.
I think that at the heart of most players is a person who just fell in love with the game. I mean, really, have any of you ever seen anyone who became rich playing the game on any level, gambling, tourney winnings, or otherwise? I doubt it. Those at the very top like SVB, Archer, Hatch, Immonen, etc - are any of them millionaires? I doubt it. I think that they just love playing the game and have been able to eek out a decent living from it. Not an exorbitant living, but a decent one. That's about all a pool player can hope for.
Also, it is worthwhile to remember that winning is not the most important thing. Taking pleasure in playing the game to the best of my ability and constant improvement is the only point to me. The day that stops being true is the day you see me sell my table, cues, and everything else pool related.
If you play well and strive to improve, wins will follow.
Quote from our BIBLE (Chapter two, verse 8) on the motivation to play the game:
SAUSAGE
That's game.
Eddie goes over to the water cooler for a drink while Fats doles out
his losings on the table.
EDDIE
(to Charlie)
How much we got?
CHARLIE
Eleven thousand four hundred, cash. Here in my
pocket.
EDDIE
Preacher, go on down and get me some breakfast,
will ya? Egg sandwich and a cup of coffee. You
want something, Charlie?
CHARLIE
Now wait a minute. You're coming with me. You're
gonna eat breakfast at the hotel. Pool game
is over.
EDDIE
No, it isn't, Charlie.
CHARLIE
Eddie ...
EDDIE
The pool game is over when Fats says it's over.
CHARLIE
You wanted ten thousand? You got ten thousand.
EDDIE
Ah, get with it, will ya, Charlie?
CHARLIE
Get with what?
EDDIE
You can't see it, can you, Charlie? I mean,
you've never been able to see it. I came after
him. And I'm gonna get him. I'm goin' with him
all the way. The pool game is not over until
Minnesota Fats says it's over. Is it over,
Fats?
He stands before Fats and Bert Gordon, waiting for an answer. Fats and
Bert exchange glances but nothing is said.
EDDIE
(to Bert)
I'm gonna beat him, mister. I beat him all
night and I'm gonna beat him all day.
Still no reply, no sign of giving in. Eddie starts to go back to his
chair, suddenly turns, a weary, clowning smile on his face.
EDDIE
I'm the best you ever seen, Fats. I'm the best
there is. Now even if you beat me, I'm still
the best.
You see, the money is secondary for our legend...
SAUSAGE
That's game.
Eddie goes over to the water cooler for a drink while Fats doles out
his losings on the table.
EDDIE
(to Charlie)
How much we got?
CHARLIE
Eleven thousand four hundred, cash. Here in my
pocket.
EDDIE
Preacher, go on down and get me some breakfast,
will ya? Egg sandwich and a cup of coffee. You
want something, Charlie?
CHARLIE
Now wait a minute. You're coming with me. You're
gonna eat breakfast at the hotel. Pool game
is over.
EDDIE
No, it isn't, Charlie.
CHARLIE
Eddie ...
EDDIE
The pool game is over when Fats says it's over.
CHARLIE
You wanted ten thousand? You got ten thousand.
EDDIE
Ah, get with it, will ya, Charlie?
CHARLIE
Get with what?
EDDIE
You can't see it, can you, Charlie? I mean,
you've never been able to see it. I came after
him. And I'm gonna get him. I'm goin' with him
all the way. The pool game is not over until
Minnesota Fats says it's over. Is it over,
Fats?
He stands before Fats and Bert Gordon, waiting for an answer. Fats and
Bert exchange glances but nothing is said.
EDDIE
(to Bert)
I'm gonna beat him, mister. I beat him all
night and I'm gonna beat him all day.
Still no reply, no sign of giving in. Eddie starts to go back to his
chair, suddenly turns, a weary, clowning smile on his face.
EDDIE
I'm the best you ever seen, Fats. I'm the best
there is. Now even if you beat me, I'm still
the best.
You see, the money is secondary for our legend...
The gambling or having something on the line to add pressure is one aspect of what makes you a better player. I think playing against good players (even sometimes better ones than you) is also what makes you improve your game. These two things combined in the course of a money game will make you focus on every shot and every turn. And that's how you improve!
There are so many aspects of playing pool that account for how well you play, no one thing addresses them all. The gambling/tournaments/league play aspect is the part of the game that involves executing under pressure, which is completely different than going to the table by yourself. Even if you put a sort of pressure on your self to do better and to improve, the pressure of competition with something on the line is a different thing all together.
Working on your stroke, that is something that you can probably improve better in a practice environment, as opposed to when you're competing. During a competition is no time to be messing around with mechanics. So yes, you will improve that aspect of the game more in a practice setting. Expand that to trying different shots that you aren't skilled at, since you probably don't want to try your first masse' shots in a match, right? etc, etc, etc...
This game is so very humbling. So much to think about and work at. The competition is where we test our mettle, to see if we can put it all together when it counts. However you measure "counting"...
Now that put a smile on my face. Ahhhh shoot! I take it all back. Get out there and gamble.
On a completely different note: Does anyone know any really bad players out there like me that like to gamble?:wink:
I could not agree more. I have seen so many guys lose 100's playing poker and won't bet a dime on themselves playing pool. too scared to dog it in front of people...
It may not make you better.....but it sure is fun!!!!:grin:
That's the way I see it. Gambling allows you to play for a lot of hours at once, not just one set in a tourney or one league match a week. The hours of consistent decision making, fighting and grinding is why you improve. Just make sure you take away all your mistakes from the gambling session and you practice them till they become strentghs.
I played a guy I'll call "2 Dollar Eddie". If you play him for 2 bucks, you may not shoot for 4 or 5 games. He is a good player. Fun to play against.
I've heard from others, and himself, that if you up that to $20 a rack, it becomes difficult for him to play. He's told me stories of miscuing on straight in game winners b/c of the money.
But for $2, you won't be likely to beat him, lol.
I've heard from others, and himself, that if you up that to $20 a rack, it becomes difficult for him to play. He's told me stories of miscuing on straight in game winners b/c of the money.
But for $2, you won't be likely to beat him, lol.
Amen. You get stung, lose your money.... pride drives you to get better and get your cheese back.....:wink: Course, you still have to practice..... a lot........
I %100 agree. If you lose $500 on a certain shot, you will practice that shot until you can shoot it with your eyes closed,if not you will continue to get stunGGGGGGGGGG again, again!!!!!!!!!!